BoxingExplainer

What the latest IOC decision means for Irish boxers targeting the Olympics

Boxing will be at the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles but Irish fighters' participation is not straightforward

Kellie Harrington won another gold medal at the last Olympics, but will Ireland be represented at Los Angeles 2028? Photograph: Mohd Rasfan/AFP via Getty Images
Kellie Harrington won another gold medal at the last Olympics, but will Ireland be represented at Los Angeles 2028? Photograph: Mohd Rasfan/AFP via Getty Images
Johnny Watterson's picture
Johnny Watterson
Tue Mar 18 2025 - 19:00

What has happened?

This week the executive board of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) recommended that boxing be brought back into the Olympic family, and included in the Olympic programme for Los Angeles 2028. That recommendation will be voted on at an IOC meeting in Greece.

Wasn’t boxing always in the Olympic schedule?

No. Boxing wasn’t on the Los Angeles roster following years of bitter exchanges between the International Boxing Association (IBA) and the IOC. Their disagreements became so toxic that in 2023 the IOC refused to recognise the IBA, citing financial obscurity, governance failure and ethical concerns about how the organisation was run. In the last two Games, Tokyo and Paris, boxing was organised by the IOC, not the IBA. Normally the international body would run the Olympic competition.

Was the IBA so bad?

That depends on where you come from. The IBA president is a Russian called Umar Kremlev, while the Russian energy company Gazprom became a “general partner” of the IBA in 2021 before it was targeted by western financial sanctions following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. One of the things the IBA changed was awarding prize money. At last week’s IBA Women’s World Championships there was €100,000 (€91,600) for a gold medal, $50,000 (€45,800) for a silver and for bronze $25,000 (€22,900) from a $2.4m (€2.2m) prize fund.

So, the IOC and IBA were at loggerheads, then what happened?

As the battle was raging, another entity, World Boxing, was set up in opposition to the IBA. In 2023 the new World Boxing body had 27 affiliated members and it now has more than 60. Last month, World Boxing was recognised by the IOC as the international governing body for boxing.

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So we now have two governing bodies?

Yes. One the IOC recognises and one it doesn’t.

But the decision to guarantee boxing’s place in Los Angeles is good news for Irish fighters, right?

It’s not that simple. Ireland is not a member of World Boxing.

Oh.

Yes. In a 2023 AGM the membership of the Irish Athletic Boxing Association (IABA) was asked to vote on affiliation to the new World Boxing body. They voted against membership. Some saw that as a missed opportunity, not only for our Olympic boxers but also because getting in early could have allowed Ireland take up a leadership role in the new organisation.

Is Ireland isolated, then?

Well, Ireland, Spain and Portugal are the only federations in western Europe with no connection to World Boxing. There are 22 other European nations that are members while Britain is an associate member.

A digital display shows the new sports proposed for the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles during the second day of the International Olympic Committee session in Mumbai in 2023. Photograph: Indranil Mukherjee/AFP via Getty Images
A digital display shows the new sports proposed for the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles during the second day of the International Olympic Committee session in Mumbai in 2023. Photograph: Indranil Mukherjee/AFP via Getty Images

So the good news about boxing being included for LA 2028 isn’t so great for Ireland?

Irish boxing told its clubs on January 17th that they had applied to the IBA to activate what they called their dual membership mechanism. That mechanism came about when the IBA amended its constitution last December.

So Ireland will seek to become members of both World Boxing and the IBA?

Exactly.

How does that work?

The IBA was due to have a board meeting during the recent women’s world championships. The IABA contacted the IBA on Sunday but got no response. The IBA have published no criteria for what they will accept for dual membership or what they will deny. There’s no appeal mechanism and any permission granted is temporary and can be revoked at any time. The Irish application has been in for a little more than eight weeks.

What do the IABA say officially?

“We applied to the IBA to activate its dual membership mechanism on January 17th. We have been in conversation and correspondence with the IBA since then, as recently as March 16th to seek an answer from them in the knowledge that the IBA board of directors was to meet during the course of the Women’s World Championships. We have had no response to date.”

So what happens now?

That is difficult to say and there is some guesswork here, as it is unclear whether the IBA will grant Ireland dual membership. What is clear is Irish boxers could miss out in competing in the inaugural World Boxing World Championships for men and women in Sheffield this September.

So, the bottom line is – Ireland’s participation in the Olympic Games in Los Angeles 2028 – may still be in play?

Yes. Ireland needs to affiliate to the IOC-recognised World Boxing before the qualifying process for the Olympic Games begins, probably about two years before the Games or Irish boxers will not be eligible to compete in Los Angeles 2028.